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The Kentucky Derby is the first leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown and it will take place Saturday evening at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
The year’s derby will be one of the more interesting ones in recent memory since legendary trainer Bob Baffert will not be allowed at the track as he’s serving a 90-day suspension. The ban was given to him by Kentucky racing officials after last year’s winner Medina Spirit failed a post-race drug test.
Not only will Baffert miss this year’s and next year’s race, he will be out of the entire Triple Crown series.
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Horse trainer Bob Baffert leaves federal court, July 12, 2021, in Brooklyn. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Baffert trained 34 horses for the Derby since his first appearance in 1996. He’s put together six victories, three second-place and three third-place finishes. It’s only the sixth time he won’t have a horse in the field.
However, two of Baffert’s formerly owned horses are set to compete.
Tim Yakteen, a former assistant under Baffert who’s run his own stable for more than two decades, is overseeing Messier and Taiba. Yakteen has no immediate ties to Baffert and the other horse owners agreed to the transfer of Baffert’s horses to others. Baffert isn’t allowed to have contact with Yakteen.
Read below for the Kentucky Derby odds and field for the race a day before things get going.
KENTUCKY DERBY LEADS OFF TRIPLE CROWN WITHOUT BOB BAFFERT
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Who is racing and what are the odds?
1). Mo Donegal (Irad Ortiz Jr.), 8-1
2). Happy Jack (Rafael Bejarano), 21-1
3). Epicenter (Joel Rosario), 5-1
4). Summer Is Tomorrow (Mickael Barzalona), 42-1
5). Smile Happy (Corey Lanerie), 14-1
6). Messier (John Velazquez), 7-1
Messier stands in his stall in the barn of his trainer, Tim Yakteen, at Santa Anita Park on April 25, 2022, in Arcadia, California. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
7). Crown Pride (Christophe Lemaire), 17-1
8). Charge It (Luis Saez), 13-1
9). Tiz The Bomb (Brian Hernandez Jr.), 25-1
10). Zandon (Flavien Prat), 8-1
11). Pioneer of Medina (Joe Bravo), 47-1
12). Taiba (Mike Smith), 5-1
13). Simplification (Jose Ortiz), 40-1
14). Barber Road (Rey Gutierrez), 40-1
15). White Abarrio (Tyler Gaffalione), 11-1
16). Cyberknife (Florent Geroux), 14-1
17). Classic Causeway (Julien Leparoux), 67-1
18). Tawny Port (Ricardo Santana Jr.), 67-1
19). Zozos (Manny Franco), 39-1
20). Ethreal Road (Luis Contreras) SCR
21). Rich Strike (Sonny Leon), 99-1
22). Rattle N Roll (James Graham), SCR
Who are the favorites?
John Velazquez rides Medina Spirit across the finish line to win the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, May 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
Epicenter, whose jockey is Joel Rosario, is at 5-1 to win the race. Steven M. Asmussen is the trainer for the colt. Asmussen is one of the all-time winners in North America but has yet to win the Derby. Messier won the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby in March, the Risen Star S. presented by Lamarque Ford in February, and the Gun Runner States in December.
Messier, whose jockey is John R. Velazquez, is one of Baffert’s old horses. Messier finished first in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes in February. Velazquez won the Derby in 2011, 2017 and 2020. Messier is an 7-1 shot to win the Derby. Velazquez rode Medina Spirit to victory last year before the title was stripped.
Zandon, whose jockey is Flavien Prat, is entering the Derby as a 8-1 shot. The colt picked up a win last month at the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes. His trainer Chad Brown only has a win in the Preakness in 2017 when it comes to the Triple Crown. Prat won the Derby in 2019 while riding Bill Mott’s Country House.
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How to watch?
Where: Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky
When: May 7, 2022
Projected Post time: 6:57 p.m. ET
TV: NBC/NBCSports.com
Purse: $3 million